Humans have always cleared the forest for our own interests, but in
the past, the process was slow and only limited regions were
deforested, generally for subsistence agriculture. However, today,
humanity is far more efficient at clearing the forest with our
advanced technology and machinery and our almost maniacal drive to
earn profits in the near term.
Ranching
Cattle ranches are created in the rainforest for many fast food
companies. Large areas of rainforests are burned away to create
grasslands where cattle are brought in to graze. They are then killed
and used for beef in Western fast food companies like McDonalds and
Burger King. Also, local farmers who have recently migrated to the
area are allowed to clear trees for their own farms. Two thirds of the
rainforest in Central America have been cleared for this purpose.
Farming
Cash crops such as coffee, sugar, tea and tobacco are easy to grow and
create quick income for a poor country like Brazil, home to the Amazon
rainforest. The rainforests are cleared for commercial farming of
these crops, which are then exported cheaply to Western countries.
More recently, the illegal drug cocaine has become a popular cash crop
and there are no ways to enforce laws to prevent this happening. Not
only are the crops exported to Western countries, but they are also
used to feed the country's own people. Most countries that have
rainforests have large populations that the government cannot manage
to feed. By clearing the rainforests they have instant land to grow
these essential foods, and provide work for those people who cannot
find any.
Logging
Hardwood trees such...
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...government
supervision means that private firms have freer reign and can work to
maximize efficiency, even if it means cutting corners like compliance
with government environmental legislation. The localization of
decision making and law enforcement also make it easier for
corporations to bribe local officials.
Road Construction
The construction of roads to access logging, oil, and mining sites in
the rainforest opens vast stretches of forest to exploitation by
landless peasants who are responsible for the majority of rainforest
destruction today. Numerous government and development agencies have
funded roads and highways that cross forest areas. One of the most
famous is the Trans-Amazonian-Highway in Brazil which opened up the
Roraima state to widespread invasion and deforestation by miners and
colonists.
for milling before they are sold back to the United States at a higher price. Not only does the public lose money in this process but it costs Americans a number of jobs in the market. On the other hand, agencies have made efforts to prevent it. deforestation. Members of the Forest Service educate not only the large companies, but the private landowners as well.
Farmers are the agents of more rainforest destruction than any other factor. Farmers in rainforest countries are often poor and can't afford to buy land that has already been cultivated.... ... middle of paper ... ...
Following a brief introduction of the history of the development of Brazil, I have broken the paper into five sections; each section is dedicated to one of the five main contributing factors of deforestation. The five main contributors are cattle ranching, farming, logging, infrastructure development, and weaknesses in the government. In each section I will discuss how each factor effects the environment and Brazil at large.
The introduction of cattle ranching industries in the 1960s set the forefront for current Brazilian rainforest deforestation figures. During this time, development subsidy programs encouraged Brazilians to clear rainforest for pastureland and invest in new cattle ranches (Pancheco). Over the last 40 years, Brazil has destroyed 700,00 square kilometers of rainforest, an area about the size of Texas (BBC) (Enchanted Lear...
The rain forests also provide important exports such as oil, nuts, and rubber. Brazilian nuts have become an important export and coffee has been South America’s main source of money. After Charles Goodyear learned how to use rubber to benefit humans the demand for it increased. The Amazon began to provide rubber for tires made around the world. Today the Amazon still provides the world with a large supply of rubber. Deforestation of rain forests decreases the amount of rubber South America supplies, and businesses will soon have to find a new supply of this resource.
Countries such as Brazil and Indonesia have been greatly affected by deforestation with well over two million hectares of naturally forested land now rendered barren (See appendix 1).
Deforestation is a serious issue in today’s world. What once was a green Earth is now becoming a desolate land mold that is losing one of its main attributes: forests. Similar to Rachel Carson’s perception, the Earth was once full of lavish forests and is slowly deteriorating into empty, unappealing land.
Due to the fact that after World War II expansion accelerated throughout the northwestern section of the forest, a highway system was put into construction. At this point in time, the Ecuadorian Amazon consisted of a few small towns that had been established in valleys and at the base of the mountains. Indigenous groups comprised the majority of the population, and there was little contact with the rest of the world.... ... middle of paper ...
The devastating effects of hunting are made worse by logging companies that “provide the physical and social infrastructure for this anarchic exploitation. They supply the roads, workers, and ammunition to carry out this growing un-policed commercial enterprise. In the case of the Brazilian Amazon, the building of major roads for loggers to enter inaccessible regions has caused major forest loss, which directly threatens primate populations.
Reason to Listen: You as the audience should listen and understand why our planet is becoming hotter and hotter, losing specialized species, and in-turn why plants are no longer able to survive for as long as they were able to before.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Nigeria has one of the world’s highest deforestation rates of primary forests. Deforestation is the process of cutting down and removing all or most of the trees in a forested area. Nigeria is a country located in the western part of Africa; it is a country that has diversity in forests and wildlife, including several species of both plants and animals. What are the causes of deforestation? Trees are being cut down and used for different purposes, but cutting the trees is resulting to different negative factors affecting our society and also affecting the atmosphere. It can also erode soils, contribute to desertification and the pollution of waterways, and decrease
In the early 1970's, the Brazillian military urged people to allocate to new land in hopes of more modern society that would allieviate poverty and encourage social stability in other areas of the country by having the people move to what they thought was empty land. They ignored the already in place indigenous people that have for many centuries, as we learned in the book "Nature Across Cultures", have shaped the past and the development of the Amazonia through Indigenous knowledge. The ancestors of their ancestors are responsible for creating the vast
was frozen, making the planet an ice age. Now, temperatures have been rising for centuries and
State policies to encourage economic development, such as road and railway expansion projects, have caused significant, unintentional deforestation in the Amazon and Central America.
The Disappearing Rainforests Conserving the rainforest is a global issue of great importance. Tropical rainforests provide a habitat for animals, a unique ecosystem for vegetation, and an abundance of resources for humans, yet they are being destroyed at an astonishing rate. Experts estimate that if these endangered territories continue to be consumed in this manner, no more will be standing in forty years (Rainforest). Examining the social, environmental, and economic costs of the continued destruction of the Earth's tropical rainforests will prove that deforestation for short-term profit is ultimately not viable.